Wizard Gigantic (Intergalactic Wizard Scout Chronicles Book 9)

by Rodney Hartman

  “How do you know that?” asked Nickelo. “That information is not currently in my databanks.”

  Richard shrugged. “I just do. Someone must’ve told me once.”

  After finishing their impromptu language lesson, Mia said several words of gibberish to Tracer and Amir, then left to confer with Derander and Freestrod.

  It didn’t take long for Richard to figure out what the priestess had told his companions. His team leader and the big man immediately took up where Mia had left off. Tracer and Amir had him go over items in the camp and tell them his word for whatever they pointed at. Amir was much better at remembering and pronouciating the words than Tracer, but Richard had to give his teamleader credit. Tracer didn’t seem to give up on anything once she started.

  “I calculate you were correct about your theory that magic users are better at memorizing the words,” said Nickelo. “Amir is a magic user of some kind. I’d stake your life on it. What kind that is, I am not sure, but his Power reserve has been used before, so he definitely knows at least some magic.”

  After pulling a stint of guard during the night, Richard dozed for a while after he got back to camp. Once he woke from his nap, he lay on his blanket, staring at the stars. They seemed to be calling to him in some strange way.

  “What do you think they are? Stars, I mean,” Richard asked his battle computer.

  “That’s easy enough,” said Nickelo. “They are balls of burning gas hurtling through the vast emptiness of space.”

  “No, Nick. I mean it. I wonder what they are.”

  “Hmmm, how to explain color to a man who cannot see?” said Nickelo. “Let me try it this way. You are composed of physical matter, mostly carbon. The stars are composed of gas. The force of gravity compresses the gas so tight it causes an intense heat, which makes it burn. Hence you are looking at massive balls of burning gas so far away that the light from some of them has taken tens of thousands of years to reach your eyes.”

  “Fine. If you don’t want to tell me what they are, the least you can do is keep the jokes to yourself.”

  “Okay, let me try again. The lights are little torches put in the sky by the Creator to give you something to count when you cannot sleep. Do you like that explanation better?”

  “Well, I’m not sure I like it any better, but it does seem more reasonable.”

  An image of people encased in metal tubes hurtling between the points of light flashed in Richard’s mind. The tubes were replaced by an image of silver. Something tingled on his left hand. When he looked down, he noticed the red gem in his ring glowing slightly. Something warm ran up his arm from the gem and into the left side of his chest. The warmth was faint, but it was definitely there. He felt at peace.

  The remainder of the night dragged by. Bored beyond belief, Richard washed the pot in the stream and refilled it with water. He set the container of liquid on top of the coals from the fire they’d used to cook supper. Once the water was steaming, he threw in a double handful of leaves he’d gathered from a couple of scraggily bushes near the stream. Once the leaves boiled down to a greenish goo, he manipulated the concoction’s DNA enough to convert it into something tasting remarkably like a green tea. As the first rays of the sun began reflecting off the plain below, he took the pot around the small camp and poured a little of the liquid into the elves’ bowls. It wasn’t much of a breakfast, but without a source of protein, it was the best he could do.

  Once the elves broke camp, they formed up in a double file and began riding down a trail leading east, in the general direction of the plain below. With two of the monks and a team of lancers riding point, Mia led the column toward whatever lay ahead. She made a point of having Richard ride next to her. As they rode, she pointed to various things and had him tell her their names. She rarely needed to hear the word twice.

  “I still say she must be part computer,” said Nickelo. “If the two of you keep this up, you’ll be jabbering away about the meaning of life in no time.”

  “Doubtful,” Richard said, unsure if his battle computer was trying to be serious or not. “Names of items are one thing. Subtle meanings like emotions or thoughts are another. It could take years for her to learn my language, whatever language that is.”

  “It’s intergalactic standard,” said Nickelo. “By the way, for all we know, you might be with the elves for years. Since the elf is obviously willing to learn, I highly recommend you take advantage of the opportunity. That is, unless you want to go around grunting and pointing at things for the rest of your life, trying to make others understand what you want.”

  Richard didn’t bother answering, but he did take advantage of the time to teach the elf as much of his language as he could. There was little else to do during the long ride down the mountain. Besides the language lesson, the only excitement was a couple of minor landslides when the mountains decided to rumble their displeasure.

  When noon came, Mia waved Tracer and Amir forward to continue their lessons and moved to the center of the column to ride next to Derander and Freestrod. She had the elves continue down the mountain trail for another three hours, alternating between riding and leading their worn-out horses.

  After the column reached the bottom of the trail, Richard glanced out over the vast plain ahead. In the distance, he could make out farms and a couple of villages dotting the landscape.

  Amir happened to be walking beside him. The big man pointed ahead and said, “People,” in intergalactic standard.

  Reaching out with his passive scan, Richard could tell he was right. Several groups of people were on the plain moving east. His eyesight apparently wasn’t as good as the big man’s, but from what he could tell, the people were pulling carts full of bags and boxes.

  “I calculate they are refugees,” said Nickelo in their shared space.

  “Refugees from what?” Richard asked.

  The mountains rumbled.

  Catching an unusual odor in the air, Richard raised his head and sniffed. “What is that? If I didn’t know better, I’d say the air has a faint salt taste to it.”

  “You’d be right,” replied Nickelo. “Based upon the sensors in your ring, I calculate we are near the ocean. Take a look at the elves. They appear to be getting a little excited.”

  Sure enough, the elves were picking up the pace. Mia, Derander, and Freestrod rode past and linked up with the point guard, then turned a little to the south and took off at a fast trot.

  “What do you think that means?” Richard asked.

  Nickelo laughed. “Elementary, my dear wizard scout. It can only mean one thing. We have reached our destination.”

  Chapter 29 – New Hope

  _________________

  As Telsa’s part of the column came out of the mountain pass, she gazed out at the vast plain ahead. She sniffed the air, getting a definite hint of salt.

  Master Rembis stood up in his stirrups and took a big breath of his own. “I always did like the sea.” He turned and winked. “I’ll bet if I’d been born a human instead of a gnome, I’d have been a sailor.”

  Telsa laughed. “If you’d been born a human, you’d have been dead centuries ago.”

  “True,” laughed Rembis. “Still, I’m looking forward to the next phase of our trip. I’ve crossed the ocean between the two continents twice. It has its hazards, but the sea has a way of putting things in perspective. When you’re on a small piece of wood floating in the middle of the ocean at the mercy of the waves, it has a way of making the most egotistical of gnomes humble.”

  “Well, it’s going to be a first for me. The only ships I’ve sailed in have been traveling through space. I kinda like knowing what’s around me. A lot of things could be hiding in the water beneath a ship in the ocean.”

  Rembis laughed. “You’re starting to sound like a superstitious old sailor. You’re a wizard scout. You’ve got your passive scan to tell you what’s under your feet. Nothing can take you by surprise.”

  Telsa shook her head. “Not hardly. I�
��ve encountered too many creatures that can cast stealth shields to trust my passive scan to warn me about every danger. Like I said, I prefer the emptiness of space.”

  “Well, you’re about to find out which is better.” Rembis pointed at a white wall barely visible in the distance. “That’s New Hope up ahead. It was built by the humans when they first came to this land from the other continent. Compared to most cities on Slyvrastra, it’s relatively new. It’s less than four centuries old.”

  Telsa decided to take the gnome’s opinion on what ‘relatively new’ meant with a grain of salt. “I guess I’ll have to see for myself.”

  “That you will, Wizard Scout.”

  She only had to wait two hours, because that’s how long it took after leaving the mountains for the dwarves’ column to reach the massive gates of the port city. The closed gates were made of a light-colored wood that radiated magic. The half-meter-wide planks of the gates were bound together with strips of highly polished steel that also glowed with magic. A platoon of human soldiers lined the battlements above the gates with crossbows at the ready.

  Queen Emerald halted the dwarf column fifty meters from the gate. The sound of shouts could be heard on the other side of the high wall. Within seconds, a small door built into the gate opened. Out walked a well-dressed male courtier carrying an elaborately decorated staff. The man had what looked like a perpetual sour-look on his face and was flanked by a squad of heavily armed soldiers. After making his way to the head of the dwarf column, the courtier bowed. Queen Emerald and he began talking, but they were too far away for Telsa to hear.

  “Do you want me to increase the sensitivity of your battle helmet’s receivers?” asked Raj. “I can hear them perfectly. The courtier is a messenger from the city’s regional governor. The crews for three of the dwarves’ ships arrived last week. The ships are ready to go. Queen Emerald and the governor’s messenger are discussing payment.”

  “You mean a bribe?” Telsa asked.

  Raj gave a canned laugh. “I do believe that is the technical term.”

  Emerald motioned at a dwarf leading a pack pony with wooden chests bound on either side. The dwarf handed the pony’s lead line to one of the courtier’s soldiers. When the human soldier opened the two lids, the courtier looked inside. The previously sour-looking courtier’s face broke out in a grin that was almost immediately replaced by another sour-look, but Telsa didn’t have to be told the man liked what he’d seen. He motioned at one of the guards on the battlements. Within seconds, the massive gates to the city swung open and then the courtier and his soldiers led the way inside.

  Telsa soon found herself weaving through the crowded city streets along with the rest of the dwarf column. She was impressed by the cleanliness of the city. Both buildings and cobblestone streets were well maintained.

  Leaning close to Rembis riding on her left side, Telsa said, “For a four hundred-year-old city, it’s very clean. Most of the buildings are made from white stone. They look like they’re fresh out of the quarry.”

  Rembis laughed. “That’s magic for you. According to General Fenmar, the city council has strict standards on building maintenance. There’s a whole industry built around magic users casting preservation and cleaner-spells on buildings. I haven’t been here in over a century, but I swear everything looks as new as it did the day they laid the first stone.” He gave another laugh. “Your Empire would do well to follow their lead. I’ve seen videos of some of your cities. Pretty dismal looking things, if you ask me.”

  Telsa couldn’t argue. Once a commercial building went up back home, few owners were willing to spend large amounts of credits to keep it looking spic and span. “I suppose you’re right, but I’d be interested in seeing what this place looks like in the future. Short-term maintenance is one thing. Long term is another.”

  When Rembis refused to respond, Telsa figured she’d scored a point. Whether she had or not, it didn’t matter. They’d reached the docks. The city’s port was nearly as clean and well-maintained as the city itself. A good hundred ships of various sizes were anchored in the bay. A few were warships, but most were merchant vessels of one kind or another. At least a dozen massive docks stuck out in the water. Several ships were tied off at the docks, taking on supplies. Other merchant ships in the bay were using small boats powered by sails or in some cases by magic to offload supplies. The smaller boats made a steady stream between the ships in the harbor and the docks. Telsa noticed a lot of the cargo being ferried from the ships to the docks consisted of people, mostly of human stock.

  Nodding her head at the smaller boats, Telsa said, “That’s a lot of people. Why so many?”

  Rembis shrugged. “Why not? It’s only been four hundred years since the Dragars’ spaceport on the other continent was destroyed. A lot of nukes went off during the rebellion. You were there, you know. It will probably be thousands of years before the radiation danger is gone. There’s been a steady influx of refugees ever since the rebellion.”

  Telsa thought about the hazards of living in radioactive areas without advanced decontamination equipment. “Can’t say I blame them, I suppose. The Empire’s got ways of removing radioactivity from the land. Unless you mages have spells that can do the same thing, I’d say leaving for some place healthier on the body is probably the best course of action.”

  “Oh, we’ve got some spells that help,” said Rembis, “but the contaminated areas on the other continent are quite extensive. The dwarves’ mages did a good job cleaning up the area around Old Drepdenor, but some of the other places are still hot.” He smiled. “And I’m not talking about temperature.”

  At that moment, Chancee rode up and flashed a wide smile, revealing the points of her eyeteeth. She pointed at three merchant ships tied off at the nearest dock. “Those three ships are ours. Emerald says the two of you will be onboard the Skipjack with us. It’s the center of the three ships.”

  Telsa nodded. She hadn’t exactly warmed to the vampire during their travels, but since the ranger hadn’t tried tearing anyone’s throat out and sucking them dry, she’d been trying to give her the benefit of the doubt. Telsa pointed up at the sun. “I’ve been meaning to ask you something. It’s almost noon and there isn’t a cloud in the sky. No offense, but I thought sunlight killed vampires. How come you’re not affected?”

  The ranger smiled, her fangs glinting in the sun’s rays. “No offense taken. The truth is, it does affect me some. Sunlight makes my skin itch. It’s uncomfortable, but it won’t kill me. I’m not sure how vampires work on your world, but the only way to kill them here is to destroy their heart or cut off their head.” She smiled again. “That’s just a friendly piece of advice.” After another smile, Chancee turned her horse and headed back down the street.

  Telsa and Rembis turned their mounts over to the party’s animal handlers. The dwarves assigned to the task quickly began preparing the horses and ponies to be loaded onto the ships. As for Rembis and her, a dwarf that was one of the Skipjack’s sailors led them to a room with a double set of wooden bunk beds. The flimsy mattresses on the beds looked none too comfortable. Telsa was thankful she’d gotten used to sleeping in her battle suit over the years.

  “The two of you will be bedding down in here with a couple of the others,” said the sailor. “The ship’s a mite crowded, so you’ll be hot-bunking it. You’ve got the bunks at night. The night shift will have them during the day. Any questions?”

  “None,” said Rembis as he tossed his bedroll in a corner of the small room.

  Since bedrolls already occupied the four bunks, Telsa tossed her pack and bedroll on top of Rembis’s gear. She considered sticking her modified M23 assault rifle in the corner but thought better of it. With the rifle strapped over her shoulder, she followed Rembis topside.

  The ship’s crew was busy making preparations for departure. As Rembis and she leaned against the railing making small talk, Major Nekash joined them.

  “I assume your accommodations are suitable,” said
the major with a grin. “Most of my soldiers will be sleeping topside or in the cargo hold. For my part, I’ll be staying with them.”

  “Oh, everything’s peachy-keen,” Telsa said with a laugh. “I think our mattresses come with all the free fleas we can handle at no additional cost.”

  General Fenmar’s nephew laughed. “No doubt. I’m sure Rembis has a spell or two up his sleeve that can get rid of pests.”

  The gnome nodded. “That I do. Our biggest concern will probably be boredom. I suspect there won’t be a lot to do except count waves.”

  “Let’s hope,” laughed the major. “In the meantime, wave goodbye to New Hope. Creator willing, our next stop will be Point Departure on the eastern continent. Then it will be on to Old Drepdenor. From there it will be…” He shrugged. “Actually, I suppose we’ll just have to wait to find out.”

  The ship rocked and the sails filled as the Skipjack’s captain maneuvered away from the dock and into the harbor. Within minutes, they were sailing past the anchored ships and out to the open sea.

  Telsa took a final look at the fading city. Even at a distance, the white stone of the buildings glistened in the sunlight. She turned to Rembis. “It’s a pretty place, all things considered.”

  “Yes, it is,” agreed the mage. “Let’s hope it stays that way.”

  Chapter 30 – A Ship Acquired

  __________________________

  Mia wasted no time making for the city that was their destination. The walls surrounding three sides of the city were tall and darkened with age. From the slight rise of the hill they were on, Richard could tell that like most port towns he’d seen in the past, the fourth part of the wall was not a wall at all. It was the water of the harbor.

  “Hmmm,” said Nickelo. “I calculate the city walls have seen better days.”